Britain, Europe Move to Address Budget Deficit While U.S. Debt Explodes
Defense not exempt from harsh cuts UK leaders are imposing
The newly-elected coalition government in the UK has wasted no time in addressing the nation’s most serious economic challenge—the growing national debt and heavy reliance on deficit spending. Ironically, while we have castigated the European governments in the past for reckless spending, trending toward Socialism, and for promoting welfare statism, the major powers across the Atlantic are tightening their belts and embarking on austerity programs.
In contrast, here in the U.S., the increasing reliance on deficit spending and running the printing presses at full speed continues unabated. Isn’t it ironic that at the last G-20 meeting, Germany’s Angela Merkel and France’s Nicolas Sarkozy refused to support Barack Obama’s call for increases in global spending. Instead they are adopting tough measures to rein in the debt, in spite of public demonstrations as are occurring in France over the proposed raising of the retirement age. In this country, despite a national debt that is heading toward $14 trillion, calls are being heard for even more “stimulus” funding and deficit spending.
Nowhere is this shift toward adopting tough measures to address escalating deficits more apparent than in the UK, where the coalition Conservative-Labor government led by Prime Minister David Cameron has produced an austerity budget that “radically reduces government spending on the welfare state”, as David Broder observes (“What America might learn from the British austerity model”, WP, Oct 24). Broder notes that Britain’s budget deficit is now equal to 11.9% of that country’s GDP (versus 8.9% in the U.S.). “While the Obama Administration and the Federal Reserve have chosen to stimulate economic growth by tax cuts and spending in hopes of reducing debt”, Britain has opted for the more painful gamble of slashing public spending and increasing taxes. Gosh, how unEuropean!
Many have been surprised that the supposedly weak and tenuous UK governing alliance between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats (a reform minded middle-class party) has been able to agree on moving rapidly away from Keynesian economics. So far the coalition is working and nothing in the budget is sacrosanct, including defense spending.
British defense cuts will fundamentally alter UK military capabilities
As Max Boot reminds us (WSJ, Oct 21, “New Defense Cuts….”), in 1982 the Brits were able to conduct one of the most ambitious naval expeditionary operations, sending 65 warships and 7,000 Marines to evict the Argentineans from the Falklands. In 1991 it sent 45,000 troops to the Gulf, and roughly the same number in 2003. Today they have 9,500 troops in Afghanistan.
Now, Boot argues, “the days of British military power appear to be ending”, with the “obituary written, ironically, by a Tory-dominated government”. Cameron announced that the government will cut defense spending by 8% over the next four years, less than feared, but still significant. The UK forces will cut way back in its purchases of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the navy will lose its harrier jump jets, and will have only one aircraft carrier (but without any carrier-strike aircraft until 2020!). The navy’s fleet of destroyers and frigates will be at the lowest level since the days of the Spanish Armada. The naval cutbacks have led to some totally unanticipated steps, such as the recently announced UK-France “sharing” of its “common” aircraft carriers. Whew!
The anticipated “threat environment” will have a major impact on the ground forces. The Army will lose much of its intervention capability as it shifts to a mission focusing on “conflict prevention” and counter-insurgency, the anticipated conflicts of the immediate future. Over 40% of the tank force will be cut. In the place of intervention, a stronger focus on likely future challenges, such as Cyber Warfare and global terrorism, will shift defense procurement away from air force fighters and naval power projection forces. All of this means the UK will be less able to undertake unilateral or joint military operations, although it will still retain the capability to effectively engage in foreign contingency operations unilaterally or with a larger US/NATO-led coalition as in Afghanistan.
The UK will still be spending at least 2% of GDP on defense, ahead of its European colleagues. Right now that portends a widening gap between US and NATO military capabilities, as Britain moves closer to the European model. But then US Secretary of Defense Bob Gates is planning for the likelihood of significant reductions in the Pentagon’s budget as well.
The British cuts are far less that the Chancellor of the Exchequer had asked for, but will significantly lessen UK military capabilities. It is interesting that a Tory-led coalition government has imposed these deep cuts in defense spending. However, it is even more ironic that a European nation is more serious about getting its economic house in order than is the United States!
Tyrus W. Cobb
Minister of Enlightenment, the NSF
October 24, 2010